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Team Penske: No Shell livery for Indy cars anytime soon

April 20, 2010

Do not expect Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe to drive Shell-liveried cars in the Izod IndyCar Series anytime soon, a Team Penske spokesman said Wednesday.

Penske's new deal with Shell--also announced on Wednesday--is based on the company's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series effort, with Kurt Busch driving the No. 22 Shell-sponsored car and Brad Keselowski moving to the No. 2 car sponsored by Miller Lite.

The announcement raised the question of a potential new look for Penske's Indy cars, since long time sponsor Philip Morris and its Marlboro brand ended its relationship with the team prior to this season becuase of federal advertising guidelines forced on tobacco companies. That forced the team to redesign the styling of two of its three cars, which carried the famous Day-Glo red-and-white scheme in use for 20 seasons.

Penske's Indy car driven by Will Power features a black color scheme and prominent Verizon Wireless branding, while Castroneves's and Briscoe's cars are now mostly black with white and red trim, with various smaller sponsors' logos visible. Castroneves's and Briscoe's cars will add Shell decals because of an associate-sponsor relationship, but their basic liveries essentially will remain unchanged from those used throughout the year so far.

However, Team Penske spokesperson Merrill Cain said it is possible that Shell could take on an expanded role with the IndyCar operation in the future, perhaps in the form of a special car on occasion, or possibly for even a couple of races next season.